Chem profs don’t usually weigh in on tax policy, but it’s the season for thoughtful giving and nothing says, “I care about you,” like a thoughtful gift. That’s why I’m suggesting the US adopt a carbon tax in the new year.
The rationale for such a gift is easily explained. We have been treating the sky as a huge toilet for over half a century. A list of all the chemicals that get belched, burned, or boiled into the atmosphere would make for some scary reading so I’ll just talk about one thing: “carbon”. (This usually refers to CO2, but it can also mean CH4 and other, less common, substances – hey, this really is about chemistry!)
Carbon emissions are causing global warming. This is a global problem and one that will get worse over time. And the only “solution” at this time is to reduce those emissions. A carbon tax can do that. It would be a gift to the entire planet and to generations to come. Reducing carbon emissions is the gift that says, “I care about you.”
If you would like to read more about the need for carbon taxes (and join me in guessing how to pronounce “Pigou” and “Pigouvian”), check out Paying For It by Elizabeth Kolbert (The New Yorker, 2012 Dec 10, p. 29)
Update Dec 28, 2012: Yesterday’s NY Times carried a story about carbon taxes in Ireland (Carbon Taxes Make Ireland Even Greener, E. Rosenthal). Not everyone likes them (the politicians who enacted the taxes have been voted out), but they are helping cut Ireland cut its carbon emissions. As a former energy minister put it, “We are not saints like those Scandinavians — we were lapping up fossil fuels, buying bigger cars and homes, very American,” said Eamon Ryan, who was Ireland’s energy minister from 2007 to 2011. “We just set up a price signal that raised significant revenue and changed behavior. Now, we’re smashing through the environmental targets we set for ourselves.”
